The Fall of the Wind
This is the sixth episode of Spy Torture. Enjoy! Firey through the storm Spy Red Freedom 21:54, June 19, 2013 (UTC) This episode is dedicated to Ginger, for helping me make these stories better. Rush was standing, vulnerable, in front of Shard. Shard knew she should attack her, but she felt a darkening presence behind Rush. Charging was not the answer. Stalking slowly forward, Rush mewed, "I have a request. Either you and your faction come quietly with me, and the prisoners leave, or I take the prisoners, and the faction leaves. Whch of do you choose?" Turning around to lok at the rest of the rebellion, Shard thought, Well, I should let the prisoners escape. We were part of Snarl's army, but we might be able to defeat them. The prisoners would stand no chance. She opened her mouth to speak, but Roanfur beat her to it, "No, Shard. Don't do it. It's a trick. If you go with Rush, then the rest of her patrol would come and get us. You should know that. Can't you smell the rest of them?" Shard of Ice sniffed the air. Roanfur was right. That smell. It was the Spy Army. She turned to Rush, "How many of them did you bring?" Rush looked surprised. "How many did I bring? Is the smell really that strong? I didn'tknow I reeked of the Spy Army. Great StarClan, I do smell like the Spy Army!" "So how many did you bring?" Roanfur snarled. Rush looked at her in amusement, "You are a feisty one. Shame you refused to join the Spy Army. Oh well, now choose, Shard of Ice. Which group will leave, and group will come?" Shard couldn't choose. If Roanfur was right, then there was more in the forest, waiting to ambush them. that only left Shard with one choice. "Neither of us leave." Pebbles on Bottom of Stream whispered to Eagle that Hunts at Night, "We have to head for Shard's faction. That is the only way to save us." Eagle nodded, "Yes, it is." They hurried along the dark, gloomy path and raced down the hillside. They hear rustling behind them, and shouts of anger. Eagle ran faster, determined to outrun them. Moon that Glows in Water shouted, "Stop!" Her faction, which included Glow that Shines at Night, Night of the Great Black Sky, Water of the Running Stream, and Red of the Burning Sun, fanned out behind her, ready to attack. Eagle that Hunts at Night shouted to Pebbles, "Go! I'll distract them. Go!" Pebbles shook his head, "No! We should go together, and get to our destination, then we will be safe!" Eagle reluctantly nodded, and followed Pebbles as they continue to run. They were rockets, zooming across the Northern Plains. Rush stood there. She watched as Shard of Ice was shocked. “Is it too soon for me to show up? Well, I am sorry, but it was a party I couldn’t miss.” She stretched, and mewed, “Well, I’ll give you an option. Either the runaway faction comes with me, or the prisoners come with me. It really is an easy choice.” Shard arched her back, seeming ready to fight, “How do you know we won’t just beat you right now?” Rush laughed, “Hah! Like you would risk the life of some of your precious friends. I’ll use Fern as an example. Did you really want her to die? No. So don’t risk any of their lives by fighting.” Growling, Shard of Ice stood tall and strong. Rush thought, No wonder so many thought of her as a potential leader. “Okay, let us say that Snarl doesn’t want your faction back so he can kill or torture you. He wants you back because... he wants to make you guys the deputy squad.” Shard of Ice froze at that. Rush could almost see her thoughts whirling about. Yes. Take the bait. And maybe the punishment won’t be so bad... ~*~ Shard breathed slowly. You’ve got this. She told herself, Rush of the Howling Wind won’t defeat you. She stared at Rush defiantly, waiting for Rush to speak. She taunted Shard with smart words, but Shard didn’t budge. “So how do you know we won’t beat you?” She challenged, trying to back Rush off. Rush laughed and mewed, “You wouldn’t dare risk the lives of your friends. Look at little Fern. She was your sister, and she died. You don’t want that to happen to your friends, right?” Shard gritted her teeth. Of course she didn’t want her friends to die, but Rush had to go away. They couldn’t let the Spy Army get a hold of them. Not a single one. Then Rush let out her big card. Rush purred, “Let me tell you this. Snarl doesn’t want you so he can torture you and all that good stuff, but he wants your faction back because you are to become the deputy squad.” Shard gasped softly. Deputy squad. That sounds nice. And if Snarl is forgiving, then we can go back as a spy, then come back out. Then the prisoners will be safe and they can escape. She wanted to say yes, but what would Roanfur think? She wouldn’t improve. She thought it was a trap. Maybe she was right... Shard of Ice squared her shoulders, and faced Rush. “Bring it on, Rush of the Howling Wind.” ~*~ She smiled, “Bring it on?” She laughed. They didn’t know the power of the three cats behind her. “Okay, you asked for this.” ~*~ Shard tensed. The way Rush said “You asked for this.” Shard knew something was up. She glanced at her troop. Pathway to Frozen Star was staring at Rush threw narrowed eyes. Slip and Fall shivered in fear. The old prisoners stared defiantly at Rush,but Shard could see that they were scared. Rush smiled, and flicked her tail. Advancing out of the bush was three cats. All three were a mystery to Shard. They were obviously new or they were somewhere else in the Spy Army performing duties. All three of them looked fierce and ready to fight. Shard took one last glance at her faction. Mystery of the Falling Feather stared at one of the cats, certainly recognizing him. But Mystery was trembling in rage. Dark of Night was glaring at the crimson tom, whose gaze was full of rage. But why would he be angry? None of the faction members had ever met him before... Oh. He had the same look as Rush. A look of craziness that made a cat enjoy killing. Shard shivered, remembering the time she had slaughtered BlizzardClan and StoneClan. BlizzardClan didn’t deserve to die, but she had done it for Snarl. StoneClan. Red anger washed over her again. But seeing Dark of Night nearby, she remembered their talk about Fern. “Losing a littermate is hard, but you have to get over it. You shouldn’t let anger rule your life. Then you will become a hollow shell.” Just like Rush and the crimson tom. They let anger and revenge rule their lives, but that wasn’t what they were supposed to do. They should live a live and stop killing. But Shard wasn’t much better. She had killed so many cats in her life that she probably didn’t have the right to tell others what to do. But all of these cats were looking up to her, even Roanfur seem to be obeying her. For now. Shard stepped forward. "Tonight, we stand here under the moon of truce. either you turn back and flee, or face the rebellion!" Rush sat down, and flicked her tail. That was enough to set off the bomb. Shard glanced over her shoulder. they were ready. Together, acting as one, the rebellion leaped forward. Rush of the Howling Wind whirled around, dodging Shard's swipe. She danced hrough the crowd, leaving bodies in the dust. Maybe cats could die today. Shard lunged for Rush, who promptly swiped her muzzle. Growling, Shard lashed her tail. She couched down, eyes narrowed, and drove forward into Rush's flank. The she-cat let out a hiss, and pushed Shard away. Shard stood there, panting hard. Rush took a look around her. She could see the battlefield. They were outnumbered 10-1. She had no choice but to retreat. she glared at Shard, and mewed. "You may have won against the Army's greatest team fighters, but that doesn't mean you will win next time." But there was a shadow in her eyes. Like she no longer believed in something. But what? Rush and the others left, and Shard lay down on the soft, lush grass. She knew they had lots to do. For instance, preparing the battefield. (Finished. Hope you enjoyed it! Next episode, Spirit Rush!)